Welcome to the 220th episode of the award-winning Diverse Minds podcast. November is all about parenting with equity and well-being in mind.

Our first guest for the series is the brilliant Prof Keon West! Someone I have known since working at Oxford, and someone I am very proud to know.

About my guest

Keon West is a Professor of Social Psychology who specialises in bias and bias reduction. A fundamentally international thinker, Keon was born in Trinidad, raised in Jamaica and educated at Macalester (in Minnesota, USA), the Sorbonne (in Paris, France) and Oxford (in Oxford, UK) under a Rhodes Scholarship.

He currently works at Goldsmiths, part of the University of London. He's published over 75 empirical articles which have been cited over 2000 times in the wider academic literature.

He's served on the governing board of multiple national and international psychological societies including the British Psychological Society and the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (in which he served as president from 2020 - 2021).

A deep believer in the importance of good science communication, as well as good science, Professor West appears regularly on television and radio as an expert on prejudice and improving intergroup relations.

He's also the author of 2 lay books - (1) Skewed: Decoding Media Bias published by Howes and currently available on audible and (2) The Science of Racism, published by MacMillan with an agreed release date in early 2025. He is and has always been Black.

In today’s show

• About Prof Keon and what he’s working on at the moment. [02:10]
• What the term “anti-racist parenting” means to him. [07:33]
• The biggest challenge about having conversations about racism with children. [12:05]
• What workplaces can do to understand the need of parents. [23:15]
• His top three mental health tips. [28:12]

Quotes

• I grew up as a black person in a black country.
• I want people to start having new conversations about racism.
• What really frustrates me is when people flatly claim that racism doesn’t occur.
• I won’t be one of those people who say personal experiences trump science.
• I don’t try to take on everything on my own.

Resources

• Visit Prof Keon's website
• Check out his citations
• Listen to I Can't Be Racist
• Download my new audiobook - SKEWED
• Have a media query? Contact his agent, Jo Wander: email | 07771 760 226
• Join my Mailing List and receive my free e-book here
• Check out my TEDx talk: The Connection between Culture, Race and Mental Health

Work with me

Have a look at my online work-life balance course on Thinkific. You can access it here: http://bit.ly/DMMHPONC

One hour focused Sessions £150 1-2-1

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Remember to tune in next week, where I’ll bring you more insights on mental health and inclusion.